Mpls. Police: More Thieves Targeting Expensive Bicycles

Minneapolis police say there’s a rash of bicycle thefts happening around the city this month, and even though half of the bicycles have been recovered the city cannot return the bikes to their owners.

The city requires people to prove ownership of the bikes. One way of doing that is making sure your bicycle is registered.

Between Aug. 5 and Aug. 11, police say 86 bicycle thefts were reported across the city. Combined, victims say the bicycles are worth $45,284. Forty-five of those bicycles have been recovered, and only five were registered and could be returned to their owners.

Public information officer John Elder says Minneapolis police are seeing a big spike in expensive bikes being stolen.

Bike registration is free, and Minneapolis police encourage all bicyclists to take advantage of that. Stolen bicycles that are found, but cannot be claimed, are auctioned off by the city.

Police also recommend always locking up your bicycles to make it more difficult for thieves to steal the bikes.